During the first year of these excursions, ridership on the BRSR reached more than 17,000 passengers. Today the BRSR hosts more than 78,000 passengers annually. The train still travels its original 26-mile round trip route from Blue Ridge, Georgia alongside the Toccoa River to the sister towns of McCaysville, Georgia and Copperhill, Tennessee. In 2015, the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway was purchased by Patriot Rail, headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.